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Michael Stailey – Best of ‘Doctor Who’ 50th Anniversary Ballot

Michael Stailey
Publisher, Editor-In-Chief of DVD Verdict since 2004. Staff writer since 2002. Executive producer of DVD Verdict Presents, an internet radio channel producing five different shows a week since 2006, with more than 1500 hours of archived audio content.

I grew up in the Tom Baker era, watching the series on WTTW Chicago’s public television station. I reconnected to the franchise with the broadcast of “Voyage of the Damned” and rapidly consumed all of the Russell T Davies era, working my way back through the William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton, and Jon Pertwee years on DVD.

Favorite monster, villain or creature
1. The Zygons
The most unique and compelling adversaries of the Fourth Doctor, whose charm remains rooted in the era.
2. The Daleks
3. The Weeping Angels
4. The Cybermen
5. The Silence

Favorite episodes
1. Blink
Not only is it one of the few episodes that does not prominently feature the Doctor, its hands down the most compelling singular creature feature in franchise history.
2. The Girl in the Fireplace
3. Turn Left
4. The Daemons
5. Terror of the Zygons

Why Doctor Who endures
The passion of the fans, cast, and crew. There is a love for this world and its infinite inhabitants, a reverence that transcends space, time, and worldly events. No matter who is at the helm, the soul of our collective and insatiable fascination is what keeps this flame burning bright, most clearly evident in the years the series was off the air.

Greatest Doctor’s costume
Tom Baker’s scarf and Matt Smith’s bow tie are the most iconic, but my each costume reflects the best of what each new Doctor brings to the role.